The Second Zodiac Story
by Silver Wolf16
Summary: Something has fallen on Ivalice, and it's up to Marche and company to defeat the Lucavi once again
1. Lookie What Babus Found

The Zodiac Brave Story.....Take Two  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in either Final Fantasy Tactics or Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. Those are owned by the wonderful folks over at Square Enix. (about TIME those companies merged into something good)   
  
Chapter 1: Lookie what Babus found.   
  
It was snowing on Lutia Pass....like always. This day, however, a lone figure dressed in blue and white robes was trudging along the path to the other end of the pass and the summit of Lutia Peak. And it was NOT a very happy and content being traveling along, either.   
  
"What does he think I am, a message boy? Me, Babus Swain, guardian of His Highness Prince Mewt, a common errand runner? How absurd. And yet...since the Prince left it makes me feel....useful....I guess I cannot complain much."   
  
-----------  
  
It was a simple dispatch mission, really. Someone had reported an object falling on Lutia Peak and Marche and his Clan Nutsy signed up to investigate.   
  
Babus could have sworn that Marche actually grinned when he picked him out for this mission. "Well, you're a Nu Mou, so you're used to the cold of Lutia Peak. So you'd be absolutely PERFECT for this mission, Babus...." he said before sending him off.   
  
"But....Marche, there are FIVE other Nu Mou in the clan.....why me?" he started to object.   
  
"Because of your coloration. Your white color is rare...no, unique...among the Nu Mou and, well, there are possibly other bandits on the lookout for whatever it was that fell. It might be a meteor loaded with Mythril and Adamantite, and they'll be after it like flies to honey, plus you're going alone. So it helps to stand out as little as possible..."   
  
"I..I see, I think." the white Nu Mou answered, bowing his head. Although he was the Royal Advisor to Prince Mewt in the past, he was now a member of Clan Nutsy, and since Marche was its leader, he answered to him. "However....if I am attacked...."   
  
"Then your abilities should hold you out for a while, plus act as a signal to the rest of us to act."   
  
"My abilities? Marche, I am but a novice Runeseeker...I do not have as many combat skills as you and the rest of the clan do."   
  
"But you have some...besides, your Explode skill would be useful in the snows of the pass...ice monsters lurk about, and they just so happen to be weak to fire magics. Like yours." And Marche knew just how powerful his magic was, firsthand, having been on the receiving end of it many times before.   
  
Babus nodded, understanding somewhat. "And with Cyril being so close to the peak, the rest of the clan would be able to see its use and respond quickly."   
  
Marche grinned again. "Exactly, Babus. So you'll go?"   
  
"Although I am a bit ruffled at being sent on an mere errand...I am a member of Clan Nutsy now..and I do as you command, as our clan leader. I will go."   
  
-----------  
  
Ruffle him, it did. He felt about as happy as an Ice Flan in the heart of Roda Volcano.   
  
It was at times like this that he missed the warmth of Bervenia Palace and the company of the Prince--and his best friend--Mewt Randell. He also wondered if Marche sent him on missions like this to test his loyalty to the clan, being that before he joined Clan Nutsy, he and Marche were constantly locking horns in battle. However, after the Prince left, he felt terribly alone, and so he'd asked Marche to go with him on a mission to find the sole reminder he had of Mewt...his teddy bear. THAT had proven to be an interesting mission, as he had gone head to head with an impostor of his former liege, Queen Remedi. After that, he'd felt even more alone--though at that point, and even now he'd not dare admit that to anyone save himself--and so he accepted Marche's offer to join the clan, although he insisted that they would never be close friends.   
  
Once in a great while, he regretted that sole condition. Even at that point, those words sounded hollow to his own ears, but he had his pride, and that was ALL he had when that mission was done. He had nothing else...his best friend was gone, the palace was in a shambles, and he'd left the palace to, well, find time for himself to quietly reflect, as all Nu Mou were inclined to do in times of depression.   
  
It didn't help.   
  
He was still young for his kind, quite possibly the youngest to hold the title of Runeseeker, an honor among the Nu Mou. In human years, he was about 15...but then again, Nu Mou were a long lived race, and ages of 200 human years or more were not unheard of among them.   
  
However, as he'd pointed out to Marche, his skills were still developing. Some ridiculed his class, calling it a glorified Time Mage/Sage combination. Explode was similar in its magical structure to the Sage's Giga Flare skill, except that Explode was bound to the Fire element, whereas Giga Flare was not bound to any element, and his other unique skill, Stillness, was similar in nature to the Time Mage's Stop spell. He also had the Time Magics Quarter and Demi, which reduced an enemy's health by a quarter and half, respectively.   
  
But a Runeseeker at the peak of its skill and power...that was a force spoken of only in legend among the Nu Mou. To date, only a chosen few had ever reached that awesome peak...and that was millennia ago, ancient even for them.   
  
  
  
Babus had stepped onto that path two years ago, much to the surprise of his family--and the dismay of his father, who'd thought he was just chasing flights of fancy. He'd grown up more or less a loner, ridiculed by even his classmates in school--before he'd dropped out to study the ways of the Runeseeker. In many ways, when Mewt arrived at the palace three years ago, Babus felt a kinship with the young human boy. Both were alone and ridiculed in their respective worlds, only laughed at, never respected. With Prince Mewt at his side, he started to feel as though he was important, second only in the land to Judgemaster Cid and the Prince himself in prestige, and given the due he felt he'd been lacking since he'd stepped onto that lonely road. During that time, he'd not kept up with his studies as a Runeseeker.   
  
Now, he felt that lack of study was hindering him. He'd just now, shortly after joining Clan Nutsy, started back on his work, studying the ancient patterns of various runes etched into his weapons of choice, the mace. He hadn't picked up any new skills yet, but he knew he would someday...and deep in his heart, he'd felt he'd gone astray from his calling in order to find respect he didn't think he had.   
  
But there was something he learned on that final day that Mewt disappeared, supposedly heading back home to his true world. Friendship is its own kind of respect...no matter where you come from or who you are.   
  
*Perhaps THAT is why I took Marche up on his offer to join the clan...because I needed friends...* he thought as he continued his trek up to the summit of Lutia Peak. *Although there will never be another Prince Mewt...no one will hold that place in my heart...that kind of friendship...ever again*   
  
He was still thinking about that when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He spun around, holding his mace at the ready, his spells springing forth to mind in an instant. Although he may have not studied in a while, and lived the life of a sheltered royal guardian, he was by no means not ready for battle...and even being a novice at his craft made him no less deadly in an engagement. Even if he was merely a force of one.   
  
Two Ice Flans came out to confront him, sliding forth, sensing his presence as a threat to their territory.   
  
Babus studied them for a moment, then narrowed his eyes intently, half chuckling to himself. As Marche had so well pointed out to him, Nu Mou were hardy against the cold, and Babus had the additional presence of mind to wear a Flurry Robe, for good measure. In his eyes, these were no threat.   
  
The Ice Flans had all of quite possibly one tenth of one percent of Babus' mental capacities, and were solely acting on instinct, so they did what came naturally to them.   
  
They attacked with ice magics.   
  
Babus just stood there, repressing the urge to simply fall over laughing at these attacks, as the magical weave of the Flurry Robe effortlessly absorbed the attacks and converted them to energy for its wearer. For a while, he just thought to simply move around them, until a THIRD Ice Flan decided to make its presence known right behind them.   
  
And although the Flurry Robe offered excellent protection against ice magics, it offered very little in comparison against physical attack.   
  
Obviously the first two Flans had learned from their mistakes as they projected parts of themselves into icicles and lunged forward at the Nu Mou. Okay...so maybe these particular ones had ONE percent of Babus' mental capacities.   
  
Since they were attacking Babus head on, though, he easily parried one attack with his mace, dodging the second by deftly sidestepping. This left the third attacking from the side, though..and this one got through his defenses and scored his side with an icicle.   
  
"Ouch...that hurt. Gotta be more careful...okay, playtime is over...." he muttered through gritted teeth as he pulled out a potion to heal the wound that the Ice Flan had left.   
  
He took a quick check of how the Ice Flans were arranged and noted that all three were bunched together. One spell would end this encounter and end it rather quickly and convincingly. He wasted no time, but traced a runic pattern in the air and extended his fingers forth before shouting out the words of the spell.  
  
"Runes of fire, gather and unleash your fury. Explode!!"   
  
A massive fireball gathered precisely in the center of the formation of Ice Flans before it burst spectacuarly into a mini nova. When the fire died down, three steaming puddles were all that remained to mark the passing of his foes.   
  
"Better luck next time." the Nu Mou snickered as he continued towards the summit.   
  
He got all of two feet before a blade stopped just short of his nose. "And just where do you think you're going, pal?"   
  
Babus cursed under his breath. "I am here to retrieve whatever it was that fell on the summit."   
  
"Fat chance....that's probably a meteor filled with precious metals and it's gonna fetch us a lot of gil...so you'd just be best to move along and pretend you didn't see us."   
  
"That I cannot do." Babus spoke. He was scared in his mind, but his voice would not betray it.   
  
The bandit stepped out of the shadows, his clothing identifying him as a mere Thief. "You will, or we'll get to see what you look like on the inside, Nu Mou."   
  
Another bandit spoke up, a Soldier by his armament and clothing. "Hey...ain't that there Babus Swain? I heard that he was the Royal Guardian to that fella' Mewt..."   
  
"Yeah, that's him all right..." a human Fighter spoke. "Heard that Mewt wasn't nothin' but a tyrannical scumbag...makin' the laws all harsh and such..."   
  
Babus glared at the bandits. "What....what did you say about His Highness?"   
  
The Thief got right up in his face until Babus could smell the alcohol on his breath...and it wasn't pretty. "He said that the Prince wasn't nothing but a dirtbag...and I heard he ain't around no more..."   
  
"How dare you speak of His Highness with such disrespect!!!"   
  
"Disrespect? Listen here, boy, he ain't around and we can talk about him however we want to. Now get lost!!"   
  
By this time, though, Babus was positively fuming...another spell came to mind but with that Thief holding that dagger too close, he worried that he wouldn't have time to get it off before he got himself killed, or at least severely hurt. Last time he checked, this wasn't exactly a Jagd, so surely a Judge would intervene before that happened.   
  
"I said...." the Thief repeated, but then a voice rang out. Babus instantly recognized it as Marche.   
  
"ENGAGE!!"   
  
With that word spoken, a figure dressed in full armor and riding a Chocobo sauntered forth. "I will be the Judge for this engagement. The law shall be: Holy Elemental Ban...neither side shall use Holy action abilities. The penalty is immediate imprisonment. Now begin!"   
  
The Thief cursed loudly. "Damn it...an engagement. Didn't want the Judge to see this, but he won't get in the way. Everyone, attack!!"   
  
Babus scampered back to the company of more friendly people. "Marche! How did you..." he started to ask but the question answered itself as he rememebered what Marche had told him back at the pub.   
  
"We don't leave our own to hang, Babus. We saw your Explode spell and came to the rescue as quick as we could."   
  
Babus nodded. "Glad you came...thank you."   
  
Marche had brought along with him Ritz, Ezel, Montblanc, and Shara. Ritz was his friend from school before he came to the alternate Ivalice, Ezel was the Nu Mou owner of the Antilaw Card shop in Cadoan, Montblanc was the Moogle that had befriended Marche on his arrival and had been his steadfast companion ever since, and Shara was Ritz's clanmate and her best friend here.   
  
Shara was the first to attack, nocking an arrow into her bow and taking aim at the Thief...or rather, the dagger he was holding. The arrow flew straight and true, shattering the dagger to bits.   
  
"Gotta love that Aim: Weapon skill...works like a charm." Marche noted before drawing his blade, having taken the role of a Fighter for this engagement. And not a moment too soon, as the bandit Fighter came charging forth with a blade of his own.   
  
"Charging at me, hmm? Let's see you handle this..." Marche said, and slashed with his blade so quickly it actually sent the other Fighter back a few steps. This was the power of the Fighter's Rush technique.   
  
Ritz didn't have much time to react either as the Soldier bore down on her with his sword as well. The redheaded Fencer calmly drew her rapier from its sheath on her side and lunged forth, her attack so sudden and powerful that it created a wave of power that hit the Fighter behind him that was recovering from Marche's attack. The Fighter, having been assaulted by two powerful attacks, slumped to the ground and didn't get back up.   
  
The Judge nodded and tossed something at Ritz. "One Judge Point awarded to Ritz for a legal KO."   
  
Montblanc was up next...and his attack targeted the Thief that Shara had so easily left daggerless at the start of the engagement. He lifted one white hand and shouted. "Frigid winds, blow and condense...Blizzard!!"   
  
A huge stone of ice fell on the Thief, causing him massive damage but not yet enough to put him out of the fight...and the aftereffects of the spell caught the Soldier as well, causing him to drop to one knee.   
  
"Wow...two for the price of one, kupo." Montblanc noted in the unique way that was a trademark of their race.   
  
The Soldier started to get back up, but then a bluish haze filled the air and the Soldier was out cold, sleeping like a log.   
  
"Nice work with that Azoth skill of yours, Ezel." Ritz nodded, as the Soldier was too close to her for comfort.   
  
"Works every time...well, almost." the Nu Mou dealer responded. He looked more or less like your usual Nu Mou except for the patch of red blush at the tip of his nose. Not quite as unique as Babus' snow white coloration, but still stood out in a crowd.   
  
The Theif was struggling to get back up, but failing miserably, when he suddenly produced a vial from his tunic, opened it and drank it, and stood, fully recovered.  
  
Marche and the rest of Clan Nutsy looked on as the Thief charged towards them, with a weapon he'd stolen from one of his compatriots, when he was suddenly surrounded by a greenish aura and disappeared.   
  
"Violation of Holy Elemental Ban by enemy Thief. Penalty of immediate imprisonment assessed." The Judge then looked around. "Engagement is hereby ended and Clan Nutsy is declared the victor by KO or imprisonment of all members of opposing clan."   
  
Marche nodded. "Didn't know that Potions were considered Holy elemental..." He shrugged, then turned to see a pulsing red glow not far from where they stood.   
  
Babus, as luck would have it, was right by whatever it was that was producing the glow and knelt beside it. "I think I found what it was that fell here...but strange...I don't recognize the inscription on it..." he said as he brushed aside some snow.   
  
Then the inscription on it became much clearer and Babus gasped, in shock. It was the inscription of the sign of Scorpio. "This....this can't be!"   
  
"What is it, Babus?" Marche inquired of him, trotting over to him at his reaction to it.   
  
"This....this is one of the Zodiac Stones...thought destroyed millennia ago!!!"   
  
"Zodiac Stones?" Marche asked.   
  
Babus nodded, regaining his composure somewhat. "It would appear to be...but as I said, they were destroyed millennia ago....long before Ivalice was in its present state."   
  
"Explain..."   
  
"Long ago, a fierce war was fought all over Ivalice...people started calling it the Lion War....but this was brought on by humans, years before the discovery of the other races in Ivalice. At any rate....the war was dragged on for years and years, until it was discovered that the whole war was started over evil-hearted humans that possessed THESE stones. They turned into demons from the underworld and would have destroyed our entire world if not for the deeds of one brave human boy..."   
  
He turned to Marche. "A boy that reminds me a bit of you, from what I've read of him...."   
  
Marche blinked. "Me?"   
  
Babus nodded. "His name was Ramza Beoulve...after that great fight he was never seen again, and the human church sought to cover up the entire affair, as it was their quest for power that brought about the discovery of the stones in the first place. No offense, Ritz and Marche, but humankind can be so arrogant when they want to be..."   
  
Ritz and Marche didn't say a word, but allowed Babus to continue. "Go on..."   
  
"The stones were presumed destroyed at the end of that battle...but as you can see, here one is, the stone Scorpio."   
  
"How many were there, Babus?"   
  
"Thirteen in all. Leo, Scorpio, Cancer, Libra, Aquarius, Capricorn, Gemini, Taurus, Aries, Pisces, Virgo, Sagittarius, and the final stone, Serpentarius. Furthermore, as I recall the story, Ramza was never able to find the Leo stone. It was thought to be held by a man named Vormav Tingel...thought the be the orchestrator behind the scenes that was the REAL force behind the Lion War."   
  
"But...you're talking about something that happened thousands of years ago, right?"   
  
Babus nodded. "Yes...but there is no telling what these stones may portend....as they were held by the Lucavi..."   
  
"The what?"   
  
"An ancient league of demons...you could call them the devils of our world."   
  
"I see...."   
  
"At any rate, we must get this stone somewhere safe and pray it does NOT fall into the hands of evil-hearted humans...or any other race for that matter."   
  
Marche nodded. "Good work, Babus. You finished the mission."   
  
"With help..." the Runeseeker added.   
  
"Yes, but you did. Now let's get back to Cyril and find out what we're supposed to do next." 


	2. Homecoming

The Second Zodiac Story  
  
Chapter 2: The Homecoming  
  
Back at the pub in Cyril, Marche and Babus were still talking about the last mission.   
  
"Marche, that was SUPPOSED to be a simple dispatch mission..." Babus said, his mind still reeling somewhat over just how close he came to buying the farm had the rest of Clan Nutsy not intervened.   
  
"I know, Babus, but remember me saying that bandits would be after it because they thought it was some meteorite filled with valuable metals? Although it wasn't that....and being that the bandits didn't know what it really was, they definitely would have taken their frustrations out on you in a most unpleasant way..." Marche shuddered at the thought.   
  
"Yes, Marche, I do...and I am grateful that I prepared as I did...otherwise the battle with those Ice Flans prior to that would have left me severely weakened. But...I wasn't expecting that much of a force, Marche...perhaps one or two bandits, but an entire clan of them?"   
  
"Indeed....most bandit clans do only send one or two, just like your typical dispatch mission. But three? That's a bit much."   
  
"Hmm...agreed. But...there's no way those bandits would have known what it was there, would they?"   
  
"Probably not. Those Zodiac Stones you spoke of....I've heard of them somewhere...."   
  
Babus nodded. "Perhaps in this other world you speak of? Marche...I am curious about this 'alternate' Ivalice that you keep referring to....what is it like there?"   
  
Marche seemed a bit confused. "Why do you ask?"   
  
"You once said that Prince Mewt..." He paused a bit, remembering that Mewt wasn't really a prince in his own world. But old habits die hard. "...was living in his dream, and that dream produced this world....so how does he live in his own world? Who is he, really?"   
  
Marche sighed a wee bit, not in annoyance, but rather deep thought. "Well...in my Ivalice, where I'm from, it's just a backwater, quiet country town. Everyone is human...there aren't any different races like there are here in THIS Ivalice, only different colors of humans. And we can't do magic or abilities or anything like we can here..."   
  
Babus nodded, his head hanging low just a bit. "So...if somehow I were to end up in that world, he would not remember me...and even if he did recognize me, I would be somewhat....strange..both to him and your world."   
  
Marche nodded. "Unfortunately so....although I'm not sure that would even be possible..."   
  
"I see..."   
  
Marche didn't have to ask him why he got the sudden glaze to his eyes...he knew inwardly what the Nu Mou most wanted...just to see his friend, Mewt, one more time. And Marche knew that the likelihood of that bordered on the impossible.   
  
"But...if we were to ever find a way, you'd be one of the first we'd invite to come along."   
  
"We?"   
  
"Sure...me and Ritz...we're both from the same world, remember?"   
  
"Ah yes..." he answered, then he looked up at Marche. "You do realize how she thinks of you, don't you?"   
  
"Huh? What are you saying, Babus?"   
  
"I'm saying she possibly thinks of you as more than a friend." Yes, Babus was there for that conversation between Shara and Ritz as well....Ritz talking about how she didn't feel she was cute enough for any male to like her, and Shara trying to reassure her that she was cute enough...and then Marche walked in and Shara expected him to tell her she was cute enough. However, Marche was just as shy as she was and they wound up going on about how the next mission would go....much to the Viara's dismay.   
  
"Err...well....not sure about that, Babus."   
  
He tapped his chin in thought. "Suit yourself."   
  
"Huh?"   
  
"Oh, nothing. Anyway, I'm going over to check over options for the next mission." And with that, he walked over to the mission board at the pub.   
  
One particular mission caught his eye, and he read the paper on the board.   
  
(( "I found this strange blue stone and I don't know what it is?!?! Could someone come to Moonstone Village and tell me? And hurry...there are lots of bandits in this area!! --Anonymous ))  
  
Babus froze at the note of the village where this was found "That..that's...." he muttered just as Marche came up behind him.   
  
"Oh I almost forgot, this is yours from the last battle....are you okay, Babus?" he said as he walked up behind the stunned Nu Mou. "You look positively pale..."   
  
"Marche....we must take this mission."   
  
"Why?" Marche read over the paper that Babus was just reading. "Hmm...sounds like we're gonna need to go as a clan...but what makes you so nervous about this mission?"   
  
"Other than the possibility that the stone the person speaks of may well be another Zodiac Stone?"   
  
Marche nodded. "Yes, but I'm betting that's not all that's on your mind? Is that place special to you?"   
  
"Once upon a time it was..."   
  
"What do you mean, Babus?"   
  
He sighed. "Moonstone Village is my home."   
  
"What?"   
  
Babus nodded. "I was born there...but haven't been back there in years, not since I left to become a Runeseeker. My parents...well, my mother was supportive of me, but my father...we never could see eye to eye...."   
  
"I see..." Marche understood all too well how different feelings between parents could affect someone. His mother seemed to give all her attentions to his younger brother, Doned, who was confined to a wheelchair since birth and always had to make doctor visits. Marche loved his brother dearly but resented the fact that he didn't have to work for his parents' attention...well, his mother's anyways since his father had left years ago.   
  
"You left because of your father? Couldn't you have studied your craft at home?"   
  
"My father always thought I was following some fantasy..."   
  
"I see..."   
  
Babus nodded. "Don't really know why I'm sharing all this all of a sudden."   
  
"It's all right...besides, I've been there too. But we better go do this mission..."   
  
Babus nodded. "Let's go then."   
  
"Oh...and since when did you start speaking so clipped and informal like that?"   
  
"Me, Marche? I would guess being in this clan would rub off on me. Perhaps it is."   
  
Marche nodded, and went over to the pubmaster to claim this new mission. While he was doing that, Babus was studying the inscription of runes on his new mace that Marche gave him.   
  
"Hmm....I don't recognize this pattern...looks like some sort of wind rune, though."   
  
He was still studying when Marche tapped his shoulder. "Okay, we're set...we leave in the morning to go. You might want to get some sleep, Babus."   
  
"As should you, Marche." the Nu Mou added and shuffled off to his room.   
  
---------------------  
  
He couldn't sleep well that night.  
  
****Begin Flashback/Dream Sequence/Whatever******  
  
"But why, Father? Why don't you want me to study being a Runeseeker?"   
  
"Because, my son, it is just a legend! Why don't you study something more productive, like alchemy?"   
  
"But I want to help our village..."   
  
"And you can by being an Alchemist...why can't you see that instead of following this...this flight of fancy?"   
  
"You never understand me...."   
  
Another white Nu Mou shuffled to the side of his father. "Dear...perhaps we should let our son follow his own dreams."  
  
"I won't allow it! He is going to do some good to this family and not chase dreams...that is my final word on the matter."   
  
*****End Dream Sequence*******  
  
Babus woke up shivering, and it wasn't the cold that was causing it.   
  
"Father...why could you never understand my dreams? Why did you fight me so much?"   
  
He stood and walked over to the window, staring out over the horizon of the midnight sky. "Going home....what could possibly be left there for me after all this time? My mother....I don't know what she thinks of me now, and I don't even want to think of what my father thinks...." Unlike Marche, he didn't have siblings to come home to...he was an only child.   
  
"In a hundred years, I didn't think this day would ever come...and why do I fear it so?"   
  
~Because, Babus, you're just like Mewt was....wanting to be accepted for what you are instead of what someone wants you to be...~ a thought resonated in his mind. ~And for as much as you don't want to admit it to the rest of the clan, you feel alone.....you want to know if your father has actually learned to accept you and you fear he still feels now as he did then. And even that does not bother you, but rather, that you're becoming closer friends to Marche than you wanted to...~   
  
~Perhaps I do...but why does it matter? Marche would never fully trust me after me fighting with him so many times...me being too blind to realize we were after the same goal without realizing it, just going about it in different ways. We both wanted what was right for Mewt.~   
  
~And you're too hurt to let anyone else near you like that...that was why you told Marche you would never be close friends to him.~   
  
~No...he doesn't accept me the way Mewt did...and never will...he just sees me as the Royal Advisor..he doesn't accept me as me....~   
  
~And how do you know that, Babus Swain?~   
  
~I......don't......~   
  
He shook his head to clear his mind and sighed as he looked once more out the window. "It's going to be a long day tomorrow..."   
  
---------------------------  
  
Marche was the first one to greet him in the morning. "Babus...you look like you didn't get much sleep. You look positively exhausted. Sure you still want to come along with the clan?"   
  
Although exhaustion dominated his expression, his eyes were filled with determination. "Absolutely. This is something I must do..."   
  
"I see...well, we'd best be going."   
  
And they were off...Marche walking along in the lead as he always did, Ritz and Montblanc beside him, Shara behind and beside her, Babus just wandering along, and Ezel, along with a couple of other clan members, bringing up the rear.   
  
Suddenly Marche, Ritz, and Shara broke into a merry song. Babus was only half listening, the other half of his awareness focusing on the runes on his new mace as he studied them, knowing there was another skill hidden in their meaning.   
  
But the half that was focusing on the camraderie between Marche and the others was all too painfully aware of what he lacked in his life. Since Mewt left, he lacked true friendship, and part of him missed it, the other part too hurt and wounded to let another into that realm. ~I was talking to Marche yesterday about Ritz and how she felt..and part wondering if I would ever allow myself to know that...how ironic that the teacher becomes the student sometimes...~ he thought as he continued on.   
  
He sighed, then, finally getting all he could from the runes, and only needing an engagement to test that, he tucked his mace into the folds of his robe and shuffled forwards to join the others.   
  
-----------------------  
  
Two days later, they arrived at Moonstone Village. And the sight wasn't pretty.   
  
Babus arrived there a half step behind Marche and glanced around, positively speechless.   
  
There wasn't a building left standing. Smoke still filled the air from whatever it was that attacked, and to his eyes, it didn't look like anyone survived.   
  
But his eyes suddenly fixed on a point about ten paces to the east. "My...my house...." he muttered, his eyes glazing over as he dashed over to what remained of it.   
  
"No...no, this can't be...this is just too terrible...." he muttered, only half aware that everyone else in the clan could hear him as he dug through the rubble....  
  
Three pairs of hands joined him in his work. "Babus..."   
  
"I just pray that they survived...." he said, unaware of the recess in the ground beside him that suddenly and quite noisily opened, startling all present.   
  
"Who's there?" a voice demanded. "What do you...." The voice trailed off as the figure, a white Nu Mou with markings similar to Babus came into view.  
  
It didn't take a genius to figure out who it was, even without Babus freezing like a deer caught in the headlights.   
  
"Father?"   
  
"By the gods....Babus? My son...."   
  
"Yes, Father, it is me....I have returned, although I did not expect to...."   
  
The elder Nu Mou nodded. "Although you may not know it, my son, it gladdens me to see you are safe..."   
  
Babus was positively shocked as he continued to listen to the one that he thought would never accept him, or see joy in him, or anything positive for that matter. "You were right, my son, to have followed your path...for I have seen that tonight..."   
  
"What...what happened here?"   
  
"Someone...someone with a strange green stone attacked our village...and transformed into this hideous monster."   
  
"Green stone? You don't mean...."   
  
"Yes, my son....someone else has one of the Zodiac Stones....I believe it was Capricorn..."   
  
Babus nodded, then blinked. "That beast....it couldn't have been..."   
  
One of the Bangaa members of the clan, a White Monk, came up, checking to see if anyone else needed the assistance of his healing arts, ears alert for any other dangers in the vicinity.   
  
"Adrammlech? But...isn't he the Totema of the Bangaa race..."   
  
The Bangaa, hearing the name of their Totema being mentioned, nodded. "Yessss....Adrammlech isss our Totema...but why would he attack thisss village?"   
  
"Because originally, ages ago, he was one of the Lucavi....how he became a Totema is anyone's guess. And it would appear that he came here to attack this place....but the only reason it would come here is....Father, did you see a blue stone in this village?"   
  
"Yes, Babus...it was I that put up the mission request. Although I did not know it would bring you here."   
  
"Do you know where it is?"   
  
He nodded. "I have it. But...there is something else I wanted to tell you, my son..."   
  
"What is that?"   
  
"How wrong I was for dismissing your quest to be a Runeseeker as a flight of fancy...Babus, even our best Alchemists and magic users didn't stand a chance against this beast...he defeated them as easily as a Chocobo would pluck up a mere bug..."   
  
"Father....I...."   
  
He held up a hand to silence him, but only so he could continue. "Babus....you must continue your studies...for yourself, for your village, for your people....and for me..."   
  
"For you? But..."   
  
"I was foolish back then, filled with foolish pride. I wanted my son to be something productive...never knowing that this day would come...and it is time for the strongest champion of the Nu Mou to come forth...."   
  
"Me?"   
  
His father nodded. "You and I know that a Runeseeker at his prime is the strongest magic user in the known world. He can manipulate the elements, time, space...even life itself...."   
  
"I see..."   
  
"And you are the last to seek that road...Babus, you see...only our clan of Nu Mou can be Runeseekers...the ones that are born white...."   
  
He nodded sadly as his father continued. "Even now, I regret that your mother and I did not have another child...as I also regret not having taken that path now, for I wish I could be going in your place...it is a road filled with dangers and perils..."  
  
Babus interrupted. "But I must....for all that have fallen here...and for the hope of the world...."   
  
His father could only nod. "Then be brave and strong, my son, and do not falter..."   
  
"I shall not fail you, Father...by the way, how is Mother?"   
  
"She is asleep in the cellar downstairs...."   
  
He was finishing that sentence when an arrow whistled through the air, narrowly missing him and landing with a loud *thunk* into one of the timbers still left standing.   
  
"Hand over the stone, old man...and no one gets hurt..." a female voice rang over all present.   
  
"How did you know I had the stone? Show yourselves!" the elder Nu Mou demanded.   
  
Marche already knew what the person there was...as there was only one race with that kind of hearing--Viera. And sure enough, a Sniper stepped out of the edge of the shadows around the village. With her, there were two Fencers, an Elementalist, and the most feared Viera of all, an Assassin....as well as a White Mage to keep them healed and battle ready.   
  
Marche whistled at the show of force that suddenly appeared. "Looks like they brought out the calvary...all right guys, ENGAGE!!"   
  
A judge on chocobo came forth...where these guys kept popping out of was anyone's guess--Marche figured they hid like gophers in the ground in anywhere but the Jagds, but he was grateful for their appearance any time, even though they sometimes made battles difficult. "I shall be the Judge for this engagement...the law for today is Missile: Anyone using a missile weapon shall be penalized...the penalty being a 10,000 Gil fine...now begin!!"   
  
Shara let out a couple of colorful expletives in the Viara tongue before screaming. "That pretty much leaves me out of this fight... "   
  
Marche looked back. "Don't feel bad...neither can their Sniper...look out!!"   
  
Somehow Marche had forgotten about SECONDARY abilities...hence he didn't see he cords of fire that whipped around Ritz just before she rolled out of the way.   
  
"Remind me again why I HATE the Fire Whip ability..." Ritz muttered before lashing out with her rapier. No one was in front of her, though..not even close..when a bolt of energy that looked curiously like a hawk split the air and drilled one of the Fencers nearby.   
  
The other Fencer started to attack before realizing she didn't have her weapon along with her--not anymore. That now belonged to a frantically dashing Marche to get the hell out of the way.   
  
"Hmm...seems a little more even now..." Marche said before a white glow filled the air and the Fencer that'd been hit with Ritz's Night Hawk suddenly got back up.   
  
"Wandering spirit, return to your body...Life!"   
  
"Damn White Mage...forgot about that one...anyone know how to make her shut up for a while?" Marche growled.   
  
"Leave that to me, kupo...." Montblanc nodded, drawing a pistol from his belt. "I have Gunner secondaries, kupo."   
  
"Then would you before she keeps bringing everyone we put to bed back?"   
  
"Okay, kupo." the Moogle replied and fired one shot. A mist filled the air, damaging the White Mage and preventing the surrounding air from transmitting sound for a while, effectively silencing the magic user.   
  
The Judge suddenly blew his whistle and pointed at Montblanc, raising a yellow card into the air. "Violation of Missile law. Penalty of 10,000 Gil fine assessed...."   
  
"Damn, forgot about that. Sorry, Montblanc."   
  
"It's okay, kupo, I forgot too....at least I'm not in jail."   
  
A familiar blue mist filled the air...but when it cleared this time almost everyone still seemed to be awake. Only then did Marche notice all the Viera were wearing rings on their fingers, except the White Mage, who was sleeping soundly...snoring if not for the air being silenced around her.   
  
"Damn...those must be Fortune Rings...they prevent sleep...." Marche growled again, ducking to the side as a blast of air split the space where he was standing and put the White Mage out of the fight for good, the White Monk releasing his Air Render technique.   
  
"Nice shot..."   
  
"Thanksssss. Anytime, Marche." the Bangaa replied.   
  
When it finally came time for Babus to move...well, his eyes were positively smoldering. "ENOUGH!!!" he shouted. "My home was attacked once...I will NOT allow this sacrilege to happen again!!" he screamed, holding his mace forward and tracing a pattern in the air with it.   
  
It took a second for Marche to realize that it was the same pattern inscribed into the mace that he'd given him. "Everyone, OUT OF THE WAY!!!"   
  
"Runes of wind, swirl and rampage....Vortex!!"   
  
A monster cyclone sprang to life squarely in the middle of the enemy clan and sent them flying in all directions...as well as knocking them out of the fight.   
  
"One Judge Point awarded to Ritz and Babus for legal KOs of enemy clan. Engagement hereby ended and Clan Nutsy declared the victors. Farewell." the judge spoke and rode off.   
  
Everyone stared at Babus, who was still panting with rage. "That will teach you to never attack a Runeseeker....ever again..."   
  
"Babus...you okay?"   
  
"I....I'm fine, Marche..."   
  
"Well done, my son...now I know more than ever that you have what the world needs..." his father remarked.   
  
"Thank...thank you...." Babus nodded, blinking his eyes. "Well, we finished this mission...."   
  
The elder Nu Mou nodded. "Yes...and I want to show my appreciation by asking your clan to stay the night here...you are to be honored today...."   
  
"Father..."   
  
"Not another world, Babus....you have earned that honor this day. You and your clan. Even if only I and your mother are left surviving to honor you and what you have done today."  
  
"Thank...thank you again, Father...."   
  
"No, it is I that should thank you, my son. For showing me the truth."   
  
Babus could only nod as he turned to Marche.   
  
"We accept." Marche answered.   
  
-------------  
  
As the clan left, another Nu Mou waited beside the remains of another building. This one was female, and appeared to be around Babus' age.   
  
"Is it safe yet....oh darn, they can't hear me from here....waaaaaaait!!!" 


	3. Someone needs a LOT of practice

Chapter 3: Family Ties  
  
Marche, Babus, and the rest of Clan Nutsy that had gone to Moonstone Village found themselves at day's end in a rather large underground structure, which, unfortunately, was all that remained intact from the village.   
  
"Welcome. It is regrettable that we do not have better accomadations befitting such heroes as you and your clan, sir..."   
  
"The name's Marche, sir...." Marche replied.   
  
"Ah, Marche....thank you for looking after my son. It pains me for he and I to have reunited under such circumstances.   
  
"Thank you...umm...."   
  
"Forgive me, where are my manners? I am Edel...Babus' father as you probably know by now."   
  
Marche bowed in respect. "A pleasure to meet you sir. And Babus is one of our clan now...as I told him once before, we look after our own."   
  
He nodded. "Honorable. I wish I could have done more to prevent that tragedy from happening."   
  
Marche shook his head. "And if you had, you would have been as dead as the village around us. From what I heard before the engagement we got into, whatever it was that attacked here was pretty fierce. Are you SURE that it was indeed Adrammalech?"   
  
The elder Nu Mou nodded. "Yes, but I do not understand why one of the sacred Totema would attack our village. However, the energies I sensed from him were....different, as though he was not Totema...so perhaps that would explain it attacking."   
  
"Yes, but you're forgetting something, Father....the Totema have a sacred oath to follow to protect their own race. And there have been Bangaa known to travel through this village...they have since even my youth..."  
  
Edel nodded. "You are correct, son. Which lends to this conclusion...are the Totema under control of another being? If so, whom and for what purpose?"   
  
Babus shrugged. "I would not know. Although I must confess things have been chaotic since the departure of Queen Remedi and Prince Mewt...and Altima only knows what the Zodiac Stones reappearing would portend..."   
  
Edel nodded. "Point taken....although it is ironic that our Totema was, millennia ago, controlled by the Lucavi...."   
  
Babus, as well as any other Nu Mou that had accompanied the clan to the village, were positively dumbstruck by this revelation. "Say again?"   
  
Edel nodded sadly. "Yes...millennia ago, evil forces that possessed the Zodiac Stones sought to bring Altima back to the world through the stones' power....specifically the Virgo stone...but he was defeated by a young boy and his clan..."   
  
"Ah...so what brought him to the side of good?"   
  
"After that terrible battle, something dawned on Altima. Some to this day think that a part of the soul of the girl he attempted to possess suffused into him...the essence of purity and goodness, and he...well, decided to end his struggle against man and work towards the betterment of all the world's races...some of which at that time had not been discovered..."   
  
"Such as the Nu Mou, kupo?" Montblanc interjected.   
  
"Yes, such as us."   
  
They kept talking for a while about the Zodiac Stones and Altima....when suddenly one of the Viera paused, her ears twitching to and fro, then she announced. "Ummm....guys....I might be wrong but I think there's someone outside..."   
  
Everyone froze. "More bandits?"   
  
"Perhaps...or perhaps not....but I can definitely hear something outside."   
  
"Well, me and some of the other clan will look outside.." Marche answered. "Babus, you, Ritz, and Shara come with me."   
  
The three he called out to nodded and followed their leader back up the stairs. The sight before them was....in a word, comical.   
  
There stood a Nu Mou, unmistakably....except for her long blond hair. Yes, her...this one was female.   
  
"Umm...nice kitty?" she was saying into the distance, timidly. "You wouldn't want to eat meeee...."   
  
From what Marche could tell, she was dressed in the outfit of a Beastmaster....and that's when he saw the two Panthers just out at the edge of the village, looking rather fierce and rather hungry."   
  
"Please?"   
  
"Calm down...whoever you are..."   
  
She spun around with an ear splitting screech. "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!! WHO ARE YOU!!!!!!"   
  
Marche had to resist the urge to scream too...given that her screech lured three more Panthers into the area. "I'm Marche...but unless we want to become kitty chow we might want to save the introductions for later....right now we gotta engage."   
  
Marche looked to the rest of the party to check if they were ready, then, satisfied with what he saw, he thrust one arm upwards and shouted. "ENGAGE!!"   
  
A judge (as usual) came out of nowhere to oversee this engagement. "Marche, don't you ever sleep? Oh well....let's see what today's law is....whoops, dropped a card....oh yes...no color magic. Penalty will be....lemme see.....a three card fine."   
  
Marche had to keep from rolling his eyes...he figured this judge spent one too many hours over at the Cyril Pub. "Fine...Montblanc, don't use your magic...everyone else, attack at will."   
  
The mystery Nu Mou was the first to attack. "Oh....what was that instrument again? " Her hands went rummaging through her pouch as the Panthers advanced towards her.   
  
"Flute...bell....banjo...oh yes, here it is.....kazoo." She started playing in measured tones....only to have the Panthers come at her in a, well, to put it mildly, more amorous mood.   
  
"Oh geez...that thing sounds like purring to them...." Marche groaned.   
  
Obviously the guest saw this too. "OH MY....NONONONO I DIDN'T HAVE THAT IN MIND....HEEEEEEELLLLLLLPPPPPPPP!!!" And off she ran around the battlefield.   
  
Marche shook his head. "Now we're babysitting?"   
  
Babus, for all his control, had to mightily resist the urge to break out laughing at this Nu Mou, which were regarded to be the most level headed and logical of all the races in Ivalice. "I'll take care of this...." he muttered and thrust out one hand, palm up and began to chant.   
  
"Runes of time, flow and bind the wicked...STILLNESS!!"   
  
At once, three of the Panthers were brought to a dead halt, time stopped in their immediate vicinity.   
  
"PLEASE NO I DON'T WANT TO....oh, they stopped....yay me..."   
  
Babus shook his head. "Yay you....riiiiiight....." he muttered just before another Panther blindsided him and he had to bring his mace up to deflect the attack.  
  
Ritz finished off the three stilled Panthers with one use of Shiva, since (gratefully) she'd taken the time to learn some Summons, and Shara KOed one more with a well aimed arrow.   
  
That just left the one that Babus was defending against...just as the mystery Nu Mou started to fish through her pouch.   
  
"Oh by the great Ultima..PLEASE NO!!!!" Babus barked at her. "The LAST thing I need is this cat trying to get frisky with me..."   
  
"Oh, don't worry, I got it this time....." she said, drawing a flute from her pouch and blowing on it a few times..."   
  
At once, the Panther stopped attacking Babus and.....pawed at him as though he were a giant ball of yarn.   
  
"NO, WAIT, STOP, I AM NOT A PLAYTOY!!!" the Runeseeker squealed as he was batted around a few times, Marche standing off to the side and shaking his head.   
  
Shara had to laugh as she finished off the playful kitty with one more arrow. "Seems she can't get anything right..."   
  
"Oh thank you thank you thank you...." the mystery female squealed.   
  
"Err...you're welcome? Although I think you REALLY need practice."   
  
"Oh...that....I wasn't trying for that...those tunes only work during mating season..."   
  
"Obviously they work more often than that...whoever you are..."   
  
"Oh...forgot to introduce myself...I'm...Kitty...."   
  
"Kitty?"   
  
"Yup, that's my name...."   
  
"Nice to meet you.....Kitty..."   
  
"Nice to meet you too.....umm....."   
  
"Marche....and these guys are Babus, Ritz, and Shara..."   
  
"Oh...okay. Nice to meet you guys."   
  
"Likewise...now can we all get back downstairs before we become cat food again? I'm sure there are more Panthers out there in the woods."   
  
"Yes, please..." Kitty replied, and they all headed back down, Marche hanging back for a little while, shaking his head. "Reminds me of someone I knew back in school....just as ditzy...and hey, wait a minute..her name was Kitty too....no, it can't be...." 


End file.
